[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 93 (Friday, May 15, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22917-22919]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-11344]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP05-82-001]


El Paso Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Gila Compressor Station 
Removal Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

May 8, 2009.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will 
discuss the environmental impacts of El Paso Natural Gas Company's (El 
Paso) request for amended authorization to remove the previously 
abandoned aboveground facilities at its Gila Compressor Station, in 
Maricopa County, Arizona. This EA will be used by the Commission in its 
decision-making process to determine whether the project is in the 
public convenience and necessity.
    This notice announces the opening of the scoping process we will 
use to gather input from the public and interested agencies on the 
project. Your

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input will help the Commission staff determine which issues need to be 
evaluated in the EA. Please note that the scoping period will close on 
June 8, 2009.
    This notice is being sent to Federal, State, and local government 
representatives and agencies; elected officials; environmental and 
public interest groups; Native American Tribes; other interested 
parties; and local libraries and newspapers. State and local government 
representatives are asked to notify their constituents of this planned 
project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.

Summary of the Proposed Project

    El Paso has requested an amendment to the Commission's Order of May 
5, 2005 which authorized abandonment in place and termination of 
service for the Gila Compressor Station. Having experienced vandalism 
and theft at the facility, El Paso proposes to remove all equipment and 
structures down to the concrete foundations. The facilities which would 
be removed include: A compressor building; pump house; auxiliary 
building; machine shop; office building; waste tanks; air receiving 
tanks; fin fan coolers; sulfuric acid storage tanks; two 1000 barrel 
(bbl) tanks; electrical and control wiring; station light poles; and 
all aboveground piping. Miscellaneous liquids (engine oils, coolants, 
amine, condensate, and hydrocarbons) were previously removed from the 
Gila Bend Compressor Station when it was abandoned in place.
    Salvaged materials would be sold as scrap, or recycled. Other 
materials would be disposed of in local land fills in accordance with 
all applicable Federal, State, and local regulations.
    The general location of the project facilities is shown in Appendix 
1.\1\
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    \1\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies of all appendices are 
available on the Commission's Web site at the ``eLibrary'' link or 
from the Commission's Public Reference Room, 888 First Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 502-8371. For instructions on 
connecting to eLibrary, refer to the last page of this notice. 
Copies of the appendices were sent to all those receiving this 
notice in the mail.
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    If approved, El Paso proposes to accomplish demolition of the 
facilities in 2009.

Land Requirements

    The facilities proposed for demolition comprise 2 acres of El 
Paso's 155 acre fenced compressor station yard which, except for a 
portion of about 3.58 acres of Bureau of Land Management administered 
land just inside the fence line, is owned in fee title by El Paso. All 
demolition activities would be located on El Paso fee title land.

The EA Process

    The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires the 
Commission to take into account the environmental impacts that could 
result from an action whenever it considers the issuance of a 
Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity. NEPA also requires us 
to discover and address concerns the public may have about proposals. 
This process is referred to as ``scoping.'' The main goal of the 
scoping process is to focus the analysis in the EA on the important 
environmental issues. By this Notice of Intent, the Commission staff 
requests public comments on the scope of the issues to address in the 
EA. All comments received are considered during the preparation of the 
EA. State and local government representatives are encouraged to notify 
their constituents of this proposed action and encourage them to 
comment on their areas of concern.
    In the EA we \2\ will discuss impacts that could occur as a result 
of the construction and operation of the proposed project under these 
general headings:
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    \2\ ``We'', ``us'', and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
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     Geology and soils.
     Land use.
     Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands.
     Cultural resources.
     Vegetation and wildlife.
     Air quality and noise.
     Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination.
     Public safety.
    Our independent analysis of the issues will be in the EA. Depending 
on the comments received during the scoping process, the EA may be 
published and mailed to federal, state, and local agencies, public 
interest groups, interested individuals, newspapers, libraries, and the 
Commission's official service list for this proceeding. A comment 
period will be allotted for review if the EA is published. We will 
consider all comments on the EA before we make our recommendations to 
the Commission. To ensure your comments are considered, please 
carefully follow the instructions in the public participation section 
below.
    With this NOI, we are asking Federal, State, and local agencies 
with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to 
environmental issues to formally cooperate with us in the preparation 
of the EA. These agencies may choose to participate once they have 
evaluated the proposal relative to their responsibilities. Additional 
agencies that would like to request cooperating agency status should 
follow the instructions for filing comments provided under the Public 
Participation section of this NOI.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    We have already identified issues that we think deserve attention 
based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and the 
environmental information provided by El Paso. This preliminary list of 
issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
     The Gila Bend Compressor Station has been assessed as a 
historically significant component of the energy infrastructure of the 
Southwestern United States.
     El Paso has identified samples which exceed the method 
detection limit for PCBs. El Paso proposes to dispose of PCB 
contaminated material in a Toxic Substances Control Act regulated 
landfill in accordance with 40 Code of Federal Regulations 761.61.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns. Your comments should focus on the potential 
environmental effects, reasonable alternatives, and measures to avoid 
or lessen environmental impacts. The more specific your comments, the 
more useful they will be. To ensure that your comments are timely and 
properly recorded, please send in your comments so that they will be 
received in Washington, DC on or before June 8, 2009.
    For your convenience, there are three methods which you can use to 
submit your comments to the Commission. In all instances please 
reference the project docket number CP05-82-000 with your submission. 
The docket number can be found on the front of this notice. The 
Commission encourages electronic filing of comments and has dedicated 
eFiling expert staff available to assist you at 202-502-8258 or 
[email protected].
    (1) You may file your comments electronically by using the Quick 
Comment feature, which is located on the Commission's internet Web site 
at http://www.ferc.gov under the link to Documents and Filings. A Quick 
Comment is an easy method for interested persons to submit text-only 
comments on a project;

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    (2) You may file your comments electronically by using the eFiling 
feature, which is located on the Commission's Internet Web site at 
http://www.ferc.gov under the link to Documents and Filings. eFiling 
involves preparing your submission in the same manner as you would if 
filing on paper, and then saving the file on your computer's hard 
drive. You will attach that file as your submission. New eFiling users 
must first create an account by clicking on ``Sign up'' or 
``eRegister.'' You will be asked to select the type of filing you are 
making. A comment on a particular project is considered a ``Comment on 
a Filing;'' or
    (3) You may file your comments via mail to the Commission by 
sending an original and two copies of your letter to: Kimberly D. Bose, 
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First St., NE., 
Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426

Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas Branch 2, 
PJ11.2.

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want 
to become an ``intervenor,'' which is an official party to the 
proceeding. Intervenors play a more formal role in the process and are 
able to file briefs, appear at hearings, and be heard by the courts if 
they choose to appeal the Commission's final ruling. An intervenor 
formally participates in a Commission proceeding by filing a request to 
intervene. Instructions for becoming an intervenor are included in the 
User's Guide under the ``e-filing'' link on the Commission's Web site.

Environmental Mailing List

    As described above, we may publish and distribute the EA for public 
review and comment. If you are interested in receiving an EA, please 
return the Environmental Mailing List Form (appendix 2). If you do not 
return the Environmental Mailing List Form or comment on the project, 
you will be taken off the mailing list. All individuals who provide 
comments will remain on our environmental mailing list for this 
project.

Additional Information

    Additional information about the project is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at 1-866-208-FERC or on the 
FERC Internet Web site (www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link. Click on 
the eLibrary link, click on ``General Search'' and enter the docket 
number excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number field. Be 
sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For assistance, 
please contact FERC Online Support at [email protected] or 
toll free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY, contact (202) 502-8659. The 
eLibrary link also provides access to the texts of formal documents 
issued by the Commission, such as orders, notices, and rulemakings.
    In addition, the Commission now offers a free service called 
eSubscription which allows you to keep track of all formal issuances 
and submittals in specific dockets. This can reduce the amount of time 
you spend researching proceedings by automatically providing you with 
notification of these filings, document summaries and direct links to 
the documents. Go to www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
    Finally, public meetings or site visits will be posted on the 
Commission's calendar located at http://www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-11344 Filed 5-14-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P